KUALA LUMPUR – A vaccine confidence campaign must be rolled out to ensure that a majority of Malaysians will take the Covid-19 jab when it becomes available in the country.
The Pakatan Harapan immunisation task force, in a statement today, said Putrajaya needs to convince the public that coronavirus vaccines are safe and effective.
“We cannot assume that the Malaysian public, or even frontliners, is already convinced that they should take whatever vaccine that will be made available to them.
“It cannot be denied that there are anti-vaxxer groups in Malaysia that would not want to take any Covid-19 vaccine, and would convince their friends to do the same.”
Yesterday, Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said the first batch of Pfizer-BioNTech’s Covid-19 vaccines will arrive in Malaysia by the end of the month.
He said they will be given to 500,000 health and non-health frontliners.
The PH task force said in this age of fake news, the voice of the anti-vaccination movement can be easily amplified online.
At the same time, there are many people who are not anti-vaxxers, who have legitimate concerns about the Covid-19 jab.
Besides Pfizer-BioNTech, Malaysia also has vaccine agreements with AstraZeneca and China’s Sinovac and CanSinoBIO, as well as Russia’s Gamaleya.
Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Khairy Jamaluddin, recently named coordinating minister for the national Covid-19 immunisation drive, has given an assurance that any vaccine used in Malaysia will have been approved by the National Pharmaceutical Regulatory Agency.
The vaccine confidence campaign should feature scientists, medical professionals, respected celebrities and other trusted personalities, said the PH task force.
It pointed out the need to “track and trace” every dose, from storage to recipient.
“This is to provide further assurance that there will be a proper follow-up with regard to the efficacy of each vaccine for each individual vaccinated.”
It will also prevent the use of fake vaccines and certificates, an issue that has been reported in other countries, it added.
Crucially, the government must have a comprehensive Adverse Event Following Immunisation (AEFI) tracking mechanism and communications strategy.
The PH task force said there will be individuals who experience adverse reactions to the jab.
“If this is not properly addressed, the negative news arising from AEFI cases following the first batch of vaccines given to frontliners will definitely give cause for others to not take any Covid-19 vaccine.
“We call on the newly appointed Khairy Jamaluddin to announce a comprehensive vaccine confidence campaign as soon as possible.”
The PH immunisation task force comprises:
Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad – chairman (Kuala Selangor MP);
Dr Lee Boon Chye (Gopeng MP);
Dr Kelvin Yii (Bandar Kuching MP);
Dr Hatta Ramli (Lumut MP);
Sim Tze Tzin (Bayan Baru MP);
Ong Kian Ming (Bangi MP);
Dr Norlela Ariffin (Penang health exco);
Dr Siti Maria Mahmud (Selangor health exco); and,
S. Veerapan (Negri Sembilan health exco). – The Vibes, February 5, 2021
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